


Uphill Battle

by Joycee



Category: White Collar
Genre: Fluff, Gambling, M/M, Mutual Masturbation, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Skiing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-29
Updated: 2016-02-29
Packaged: 2018-05-18 10:25:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5925004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Joycee/pseuds/Joycee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The White Collar Team investigates a case at a ski lodge. Peter teaches Neal how to ski.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Uphill Battle

The White Collar team met in the conference room to investigate a real estate scam involving vacation timeshare condominiums. Agent Clinton Jones projected up on the screen a picture of a ski resort called Cold Mountain. Special Agent Peter Burke asked, "What's the name of the outfit that runs this hoax again?"

Jones checked his computer and read off several names. "They can all be tracked back to a holding company called Paradise Unlimited owned by a slick talker named Scott Frei."

Peter's C.I., Neal Caffrey mocked, "Scott free? That's hilarious. He probably signs his checks _I. M. Faque._ "

Peter laughed, "Okay, smart guy. Well, you're going to get to find out. It turns out that, next to selling valueless condo deeds, his second favorite activity is high stakes poker."

"Oh, I sense an opportunity for Nick Halden," laughed Agent Diana Berrigan. "What about you, Peter? What is your role going to be?"

"I am going to be Nick Halden's accountant, Peter Wells," Peter announced proudly. "The good news is I'm authorized to bring you and Jones, too, for back up and support. Looks like we're all going to get a nice long weekend at a very nice ski lodge."

As the meeting broke up, Peter checked with Diana and Jones, "Do you both have appropriate gear for a ski weekend?"

Diana nodded and gave him a thumbs up. Jones chuckled, "You're looking at a former junior Olympian. I love to ski!"

Only Neal looked unhappy. He seemed to be pouting. Peter put his hands on his hips and looked exasperated with his sulky CI. "What's the matter with you? I thought you'd be excited! We get to spend the weekend at an expensive ski resort while we pursue this real estate investment deal. I'm even going to bring Elizabeth along."

"Uh, yeah," Neal responded uncomfortably. "It's just that, well, I've never skiied before, I mean not on snow."

Peter guffawed, "So, I finally found something the great Neal Caffrey isn't expert at! Imagine that."

"I can waterski," protested Neal weakly. "I've just never tried it on snow."

Peter waved a hand and said dismissively, "Don't worry. I'll teach you. There's nothing to it."

"Don't you have to wear special clothes and, for that matter, don't you have to have skis?" Neal protested.

"Don't worry about that. I can borrow some gear for you," Peter reassured. "Hey, come on, it'll be fun. I love skiing!"

"Maybe I could just hang out around the fire with the snow bunnies," Neal suggested hopefully.

"Don't be silly," Peter objected. "Hopefully, you will meet our suspect through his gambling habit and he will try to approach you to invest in his nonexistent condos."

"Hmm, yeah, that could work," Neal agreed. "Okay, you're on then. I'd better not break a leg, though."

When Neal got home, he found his friend Mozzie inventorying his liquor supply. Neal whined, "Mozz, I have to think of some way to get out of this ski trip for this weekend. There is no way I'm going to put my life in danger in the freezing cold for the FBI!"

Mozzie surprised him by arguing, "Oh, you'll be fine. You might even enjoy it. You'll probably be good at skiing."

Neal asked suspiciously, "Since when do you side with the FBI in an argument?"

"Uh, since I invited some high rollers to play poker here tonight," Mozzie informed him. "It would really be in your best interest not to be here."

"In my apartment?" Neal howled. "Who told you could have a poker party while I'm not here?"

Neal's landlady, June Ellington, ducked her head in and confessed, "I did, dear. I hope you don't mind too much. I'm one of the high rollers."

"What? Why don't you just have the game downstairs then?" Neal sputtered. "You have the whole house."

"But I don't want the other players to know I live here," June explained calmly. "I've found it's better that way."

"I don't believe this," said Neal dejectedly. "I guess I'll have to go skiing then. If I break my neck, you'll be sorry. Even if I don't, I'll probably freeze to death."

"Oh, that's what I was going to tell you," June remembered. "There are some skis and nice warm winter clothes in the basement that one of Byron's nephews left here a couple of years ago. Why don't you try them?"

Mozzie agreed, "You'll feel better if you have the right apparel and equipment, my friend. It always helps to look the part."

"Okay, okay," Neal gave in. "At least I can try them on before we actually leave. Maybe that will help."

Neal found he actually did feel better in the stylish professional gear they found in the basement. He pushed his tracking anklet up and tried on the high tech ski boots and found they were his size with a special soft plastic lining material that conformed to his feet to make them comfortable. Mozzie helped him put on the skis and he tried hopping up and down and sliding his feet back and forth.

"I guess I can do this," Neal said hopefully. "How hard could it be? Lots of people do it, after all."

"Even little kids! That's the spirit," Mozzie encouraged. June chimed in, "I'm sure you'll be just fine, Neal. You're good at so many things. Just enjoy yourself."

When Peter came by to pick him up, Neal surprised him by having his own expensive skis, poles and ski clothes. Peter looked annoyed, but admitted, "Those are a lot better than rental skis. Hell, those are better than my skis. The clothing I borrowed for you was going to be way too big anyway. Come on Jean Claude Killy, let's go.

Peter and his wife, Elizabeth, and Neal drove up in Peter's car. Elizabeth was in high spirits and insisted that they sing to pass the time in the car. Jones and Diana brought a four wheel drive SUV that they could use for surveillance. 

After countless choruses of "She'll Be Coming 'Round The Mountain," they all arrived at Cold Mountain resort early on Friday afternoon. The sky was grey and light snow was falling. Peter parked and jumped out, inhaling deeply, "Ah, isn't that crisp air refreshing?"

Neal shivered, "It's freezing cold, if you ask me. I just hope it's warm inside."

Jones clapped him on the shoulder and advised, "Take some deep breaths of this clean mountain air. It'll clear your head."

It was too late for skiing that day, so everyone checked in and made their plans for the evening. Peter and Elizabeth made reservations to dine in the upscale restaurant. Diana and Jones made an earlier reservation for a more modest family dining room. Neal was to dress in his classy off slope wardrobe and hit the bar where adult singles congregated to find company for the weekend. Jones unlocked his anklet and they put it in the van for safekeeping.

Peter reminded him, "The man you're looking for is about forty years old and attractive in a Nordic way. He's known for partying in the evenings and picking up gorgeous younger women, or sometimes men, to take back to his room at the end of the night."

"So how do I fit in?" Neal asked jokingly. "Do you want me to let him pick me up? What if I'm not his type?"

"No, I want you to meet up with him and see if you can get invited to his poker game tomorrow night. Also try to get him to talk about his condo business," Peter instructed. "Here's your watch. Diana and Jones will be monitoring you from their van."

Jones added, "Remember, I'm going to position a camera over the far end of the bar, so try to hang out in that area so we can keep our eyes on you."

On their way to their respective dining locations, both couples were stopped by charming salespeople offering them a reward for attending a sales pitch for the timeshare offerings sometime during the weekend. All of them signed up.

When Neal sauntered into the cozy dark bar with a roaring fire, he was immediately noticed by some lovely young women, who proceeded to flirt with him aggressively. He exchanged pleasantries with them and accepted a hot toddy while he looked around for Scott Frei.

The strong sweet drink made him feel sociable and he laughed, "So are you snow bunnies or are you all expert skiers?"

A pretty blonde named Heidi sidled up against him and purred, "Do you like bunnies, Nick?"

On his other side, an attractive brunette named Sheila with a stunning figure rubbed her large breast against him through a tight red sweater as she offered, "Why don't you have another drink with us?"

Neal took the drink she handed him and sipped it, chuckling, "Well, I might as well have some fun tonight, I guess. Do any of you know if there is any gambling at this place, maybe a card game?"

Heidi looked across the bar and pointed out a tall blond muscular man in a fashionable ski sweater. "I believe you want to talk to Scott about that. Come on, I'll introduce you."

"Oh, you know him?" Neal responded. "Maybe he'll come over here and join our little party. Tell me something about him."

Sheila waved to Scott and got his attention. She giggled, "What do you want to know about him? Are you like him? Do you swing both ways? Sometimes we have some fun foursomes!"

"Well, that certainly sounds exciting," Neal replied without enthusiasm. "I was really looking for a good poker game, though."

Sheila advised, "Scott will probably want to get you know first. His games are for specially selected friends only."

Scott walked over and checked Neal out approvingly. He looked straight into Neal's blue eyes and smiled, "Well, Sheila, who is your friend? He looks like an interesting man to get to know."

When his companions introduced him, Neal gave Scott an ambiguous smile. Scott continued, "This is your first time here isn't it?"

Neal answered, "It is. Do you know everyone who comes here? You sound like a resident."

"You could say that," Scott laughed. "I'm the proud CEO of the timeshare condos that are on offer, so I spend several months here at a time while I sell them."

"Hmm, I don't know much about that kind of real estate. How does it work?" Neal asked.

He tried to listen as Scott launched into a complex explanation, but he found the room getting blurry and he felt giddy. He slurred, ""Wow, these tod hotties must be strong."

Out in the van, Diana snickered and Jones chuckled, "Did he just say 'tod hotties'?"

As they watched and listened in, Neal became increasingly incoherent. They looked at each other with concern and finally, Diana decided to intervene. She told Jones, "Check the footage. I think one of the snow bunnies must have spiked Neal's drink. He's really out of it. I'm going in there to get him."

Diana slinked into the bar and sidled up to a disoriented Neal who was giggling hysterically. She pouted, "Oh there you are, Sweetie. I wondered where you slipped off to."

He looked at her with pleased recognition and mumbled, "This is my Diana, I mean, my best friend's best...Diana."

Diana hustled him out with a smile, saying firmly, "Yes, love, come on now. We have dinner plans."

Neal wondered, "We do? I don' ‘member that. I thought I was s'posed to talk to Scott 'bout playin' poker."

Fortunately they were nearly out of hearing range of the bar and Diana tried to shush him, explaining, "Neal, calm down, Buddy. Someone drugged your drink in there. Just stay with me."

Jones contacted Peter and Diana shepherded a drunken and drugged goofy Neal to Peter's suite which they were also using for their temporary meeting room.

When Neal saw Peter, he was overjoyed. He gave him a sloppy grin and told him cheerfully, "Someone put something in my drunk and it was really high." 

Peter peeled Neal's arms loose from around his neck and replied drily, "Yeah, something's really high all right." Neal looked at him wide eyed and asked, "Did they put it in your drunk too?" 

Peter chuckled, "No, nobody put anything in my drunk, er, I mean, drink." Neal said obliviously, "Oh no thanks, I don't think I should drink any more, do you? I'm already pretty smashed. Don't you think so?" Peter laughed, "Yeah, I think you're pretty smashed, Neal."

When he noticed Elizabeth coming into the room, Neal waved and greeted her whimsically, "Hi Lizabet! Guess what? Somebody drunked my drug and it made me feel really gooood. You otta try it." 

Elizabeth looked concerned and asked Peter, "Oh dear, do you think it was a date rape drug?" 

Neal looked at her happily and replied, "I think it's probly Estasy. I'm estatic." El giggled at Peter, "What are you going to do with him?" Peter thought a minute, considering his seriously impaired CI, and decided, "I'm going to take him outside for a walk."

Peter took Neal's arm and said wryly, "Yeah, I know. Someone drunked your drug." Neal gave him a look of wonder and declared, "Yeah. It's really messed up!" Peter walked him to the door as he babbled, "Everything feels high an I'm high, too." Peter sighed, "Come on, Luke Skywalker, we're going outside."

Peter walked Neal around the property, exploring while he tried to sober him up. At one point they came across a small cabin that Peter determined was probably where the poker games were played. Neal started shivering miserably against him, so Peter took pity on him and brought him back inside.

When they got back to the suite, everyone else had gone to dinner. The warm inside air seemed to have revived Neal and he was chattering crazily about skiing and playing poker. Peter decided to take Neal to his room to see if he could get him to sleep. 

When Neal saw where they were, his face lit up and he stopped abruptly and turned to Peter, bumping up against him. Peter was embarrassed to feel Neal getting hard against him and tried to turn him back around.

Neal sighed, "I wish you were like Scott. I wish you wanted to have sex with me. That'd be nice."

Peter was embarrassed and continued guiding Neal toward his bed. He turned his head awkwardly as Neal began shedding his clothing. When he got down to his briefs, Neal flopped down onto his bed. He held onto Peter's wrist and pulled him down beside him.

Neal's other hand went to his crotch and he began unconsciously fondling himself. He cooed to Peter, "You wanna get high, too, and fool around with me? I don't think Elizabeth would mind. We wouldn't even have to tell her."

Peter smiled indulgently, realizing that Neal didn't know what he was doing or saying and probably wouldn't remember anything the next morning. He didn't want to leave him alone until he went to sleep, so he humored him by saying, "It's not that you're not tempting me, Buddy, but I wouldn't want to take of advantage of you."

"Oh, that's okay," Neal grinned, slowly jacking his hardening cock. "I'd like it. Want me to suck you first? I will. Take your pants off, okay?"

Peter slid away as Neal reached clumsily for his waistband. He soothed, "No, that's okay. Can you just close your eyes and rest now? Remember, we have a big day tomorrow. You're going to learn to ski."

Neal protested, "Don't wanna ski. Don't know how. Come on, Peter, lie down with me."

Peter sighed, "Okay, just for a little while until you can get to sleep. Don't worry. You'll catch on to skiing in no time. It's fun."

"This is fun, too," Neal murmured, slyly turning to rest his head on Peter's shoulder. He reached out and took Peter's hand and placed it on his cock, which had emerged from his briefs to stick straight up. Peter stiffened and tried to pull away, brushing the head of Neal's erection and feeling a little precum there.

Neal maintained his hold on Peter and stroked himself with Peter's hand. He begged, "Come on and help me, Peter. Then I'll go to sleep."

Neal turned to him with such compelling desire in his dazed blue eyes that Peter gasped and nodded at him. "Okay, okay, Neal. I'll take care of you and then you'll sleep, okay?"

Neal nodded and relaxed the hand that he had been holding Peter with and leaned into Peter's touch. Peter closed his eyes and allowed himself to handle his own responsive member, too. He told himself this was nothing important. He was just doing his impaired friend a favor.

That was the last deliberate thought he had as he got into a rhythm, leisurely pumping both their cocks. That was when Neal nuzzled his neck and pressed up against him so their cocks were eagerly rubbing together. Peter groaned and gave in to the pleasure momentarily, then quickly pulled back. When they were both panting with excitement, Peter moaned and jerked them both to climax. 

Neal rolled onto his back and immediately went to sleep with a blissful smile on his face. Peter lay next to him catching his breath. After a minute, he sat up and gave the unconscious Neal a fond kiss on his cheek. Then he got a washcloth and gently wiped them both off. He pulled the blankets up to cover Neal and affectionately stroked Neal's beautiful face with his hand before slipping out to return to his own room.

Elizabeth was waiting for him and her eyes were shining as she inquired, "Is Neal okay now?" She moved toward Peter to embrace him and suggested, "Now we can have a little time alone."

Peter nodded awkwardly and protested mildly, "Um, El, I'm sort of tired tonight. I guess this thing with Neal sort of took all my energy."

Elizabeth looked at him skeptically, "All your energy, huh? Are you sure that's all he took?"

Peter looked chagrined as he admitted, "Oh Hon, I'm sorry. He just sort of sneaked up on me. I was trying to get him to go to sleep and he, well...."

"He seduced you?" El asked, smiling in spite of herself. "He just can't help himself, can he? He's so damned cute. I shouldn't have left you alone with him."

Peter put his arms around her and moaned, "Oh Hon, forgive me? You know how much I love you. I'll try to make tomorrow night really special for you."

"Are you sure, Peter?" El pointed out, "Tomorrow night is supposed to be the big poker game. I'm sure you'll want to monitor that."

"Okay, you're right, as usual," Peter smiled gently, "but how about Sunday night? If we get the case wrapped up, we can have that night all to ourselves. We don't have to go back home until Monday. Help me figure out what's going on tomorrow when we tour the so-called vacation condos, will you?"

"I will," Elizabeth promised. "Now let's go to bed so we can hit the slopes early in the morning. I almost feel sorry for poor Neal."

Just after they lay down and were almost asleep, Peter's phone rang. He recognized the ringtone as Neal's and cursed, "Christ! What now?"

Neal's voice on the other end was weak and pitiful as he groaned, "Peter? I'm awful sick. Puking."

Peter turned to Elizabeth, who hid a little smile and nodded at him. He told Neal, "Hang on, Buddy. I'll be right there."

Peter let himself into Neal's room and flinched as he heard the sound of sickening retching coming from the bathroom. He found Neal hugging the toilet with his face pressed against the rim. Peter got down on his knees and gripped Neal's shoulders. He swept his hair back from his forehead and lifted his head, saying gently, "Hey, hey, Buddy. Easy now."

Neal looked up at him, blue eyes wide with panic. He swallowed hard and sobbed, "Can't stop vomiting. Sick, Peter."

Peter patted him and reassured, "Okay, calm down. It's from the drug in your drink earlier. Let's get you cleaned up a little and see if we can get you back in bed. Your stomach is probably completely empty by now."

He washed Neal's face with a cool washcloth and slowly helped him up. Neal was stark naked and started shivering so Peter wrapped a thick terry robe around him. He got him into bed and pulled the covers up onto him. He held him and soothed him for a minute and then got a little ginger ale and some crackers to offer to him.

Eventually, Neal got them down and was finally drifting back to sleep again. This time Peter stayed and petted him for a little while to be sure he was all right. Early in the morning he was awakened by Elizabeth knocking on the door.

"Good morning," she chirped cheerfully. "I came to see how everyone is feeling this morning."

Neal groaned and covered his head and Peter put his finger to his lips to warn her to be quiet. He kissed her lightly and said softly, "I don't think Neal's going to be doing any skiing this morning. Hon, could you stay with him for a little while so I can go meet with Diana and Jones?"

Elizabeth sweetly agreed. She found a couple of Advil and took them to Neal with a glass of orange juice from room service. He took them reluctantly, gave her a pitiful look, and sank back down under the covers. She patted his shoulder and comforted him, "It's okay, Sweetie. You just go back to sleep. It'll be better in a little while."

Peter went over the tapes from the night before with Jones and analyzed the information that Scott Frei had told Neal about his condo operation. They picked up a considerable amount of information from his surprisingly frank explanation of his fraud to a stranger. Peter let Jones go to enjoy some skiing while he went up to check up on Neal and Elizabeth. 

Diana made it a point to seek out Heidi and Sheila and hang out with them. She grinned conspiratorially, "Wow! Nick was so stoned last night. What did you put in his drink?"

"Oh that, just standard 'date rape' stuff. Scott likes to initiate any real good looking men that show up here, especially if they ask for him," Heidi explained casually. "We didn't know you were with him. We thought he was unattached."

"Oh, well, he is, really," Diana sighed. "I just know him from work. I was worried because he seemed so out of it, so I came to his rescue."

Sheila commented suggestively, "I haven't seen him yet this morning. Guess he's still recovering. Don't suppose you'd be interested in some group sex this evening with just us girls while the guys are playing poker? You're a pretty sleek package."

Diana smiled, "Well, that's flattering, but I've got a love at home that I try to be faithful to."

"Oh, so you and Nick aren't, um, attached?" asked Heidi with renewed interest. "Maybe I'll look around for him and see if he feels like skiing with me. We could relax in the hot tub later."

"Good luck with that," Diana discouraged her, smiling to herself. "Nick is more likely to go for Scott, frankly."

As the women were putting on their jackets to go outside, Elizabeth walked by with Neal, their arms wrapped cozily around each other. Sheila looked at Diana saucily and noted, "Looks like Nick is a pretty busy guy."

Neal smiled weakly at them as they passed by. He asked, "Are those the ones that drugged me? I can hardly remember anything from last night."

Elizabeth squeezed his arm and assured, "It's probably just as well. You spent some quality time with Peter, too."

Neal groaned, "Oh, tell me I didn't embarrass myself too much. I'm pretty much of a fool when I get high."

"I'd say so," Elizabeth agreed, "but I wasn't there with you the whole time. He let me know you were pretty intimate, though."

Neal looked embarrassed and started to apologize when Scott Frei approached them. He observed, "Wow, you do all right for yourself, Nick. Hope you're not feeling too badly this morning."

"Oh, this is Elizabeth, my, uh, accountant's wife," Neal improvised. "That was some experience last night. Can't say I remember a lot of it. Are we still on for poker tonight?"

"You bet, and no drugged drinks, so don't worry," Scott told him. "I run a legitimate game with no tricks. See you on the slopes later?"

"Well, I'm really just learning," hedged Neal, looking around and seeing Peter approaching them. "Here comes my friend now. Wish me luck out there!"

Peter asked, "What was that all about? Are you feeling better? I'm ready to give you your first ski lesson."

"That's what I was afraid of," mourned Neal. "Let's get it over with. Elizabeth, it was nice knowing you. Next time you see me, I'll probably have a cast on my leg if I don't end up paralyzed from a broken neck."

Elizabeth gave him a kiss on the cheek and smiled, "Come on, have a positive attitude. It'll be fun. You'll be fine. I'll see you out there."

Neal gave her a doubtful look and went off to find his skis with Peter. He felt awkward and unstable trying to make his way to his beginner's lift, but Peter encouraged him, and soon the cold fresh air energized him.

In a couple of hours, Neal was getting more comfortable with making turns and stopping and began to pick up his speed. The next thing Peter knew, Neal was lying in a disheveled heap in the snow. He skiied up quickly to check on him and was relieved to find Neal laughing and struggling to get back up. 

Peter told him, "After lunch, I'm going to take you to the next level. I think you're ready to try something a little harder."

They discussed their strategy for the poker game that evening as they ate their lunch and warmed up. Peter instructed Jones to wire up the little cabin they had discovered on their walk the night before. Jones agreed and informed them that he and Diana were taking the timeshare condo tour that afternoon and he would be sure to record that.

Neal actually enjoyed the afternoon and decided skiing wasn't so hard after all. Peter flagged down Elizabeth to ski with Neal for awhile so he could enjoy some of the more challenging slopes. Neal had fun impressing Elizabeth with his newly acquired skill, only falling a few times.

They all met up in the hot tub before dinner and relaxed companionably in the soothing warm water while they went over what they had learned so far and made their plans for the evening. Before they got out, they were joined by Sheila and Heidi and two other stunning women who flirted aggressively with everyone of both sexes.

As they made their way back to their room, Elizabeth took Peter's arm and suggested, "Ready to make up for last night now?"

Peter kissed her enthusiastically and replied, "Oh yeah, I sure am! I'm the luckiest man here with the most beautiful wife."

"Mmm, flattery will get you everywhere," Elizabeth teased. "How long do we have before dinner?"

Peter gave her a lecherous smile and patted her ass as they entered their suite. He assured, "Plenty of time!"

Suddenly, they both stopped open mouthed and stared at Mozzie and June, who were smiling up at them benignly from chairs in their sitting room. Peter stammered, "H-how did you two get here? What are you doing here?"

Mozzie stood and held up his hands. "Easy, Suit. There's a good explanation. You'll see."

June continued, "We're here to save Neal from a trap that Scott Frei is setting up for him. We found out about it at a friendly little game we played last evening."

Peter held up one hand and instructed, "Just stop right there. Let me call Neal and get him up here. El, could you call Diana and tell her to bring Jones and come up here to join us. We might as well all hear this at once."

While they waited for the others to arrive, Peter and Elizabeth changed into dry clothing. He gave her a mournful look as she pulled a bulky sweater over her pretty lace bra. He started, "Hon...," but she shushed him with a quick kiss and said simply, "Later. You have work to do now."

When everyone had gathered, Mozzie and June explained how they had learned that Frei had made Nick Halden for Neal Caffrey and was planning to set him up as a fall guy in the poker game. They proposed that they be the other two players in the game that night to turn the tables on him.

Jones contributed what he had learned from the condo tour in addition to what Scott had told Neal the night before and Diana was able to add some information she had picked up from the snow bunnies. Neal summed up, "So what we have here, in addition to the fake timeshare scam is a complex money laundering scheme through the gambling operation."

Peter agreed, "That's what it looks like. It's too late to get any backup here in time for the game tonight and I don't want any of you getting hurt. I think we'd better call off the game and regroup for another time."

Neal and Mozzie protested, "No Peter, it's all set up perfectly for tonight. We know about his plans, but he doesn't know Mozz and June. We can do this."

Peter asked doubtfully, "What do you think, Jones? Diana? Can we back them up and make the arrest without any assistance?"

Jones suggested, "Can we call in some local cops for a little help in taking him in?"

Peter agreed, "Good idea. Diana, why don't you make those arrangements? Neal, let's you and I go down and take another quick look at the set up. I don't want any surprises."

Later Jones wired Neal, June, and Mozzie with two way transmitters and moved the van to an ideal monitoring position. They quickly tested the sound through some prearranged coded conversation when they got in the cabin.

Scott Frei seemed to be a perfect host, stating the house rules succinctly and offering drinks to everyone. They all cautiously refused the drinks and Neal began to deal the cards. All four players were expert card sharks and, if they hadn't known the plan in advance, no one might have caught on to it.

When Scott made his subtle move, Neal called him on it. He heard Peter say in his ear, "Easy, Neal, he's armed," but Scott had already pulled his gun.

Mozzie reflexively kicked Scott's chair over, startling him and causing him to drop the gun. June calmly picked it up and announced, "Mr. Frei, I think this game is over."

Peter, Jones and Diana rushed into the room, but Neal saw Scott hastily escaping through a concealed back door, so he jumped up and followed him out into the cold snowy night. He saw Scott quickly don his boots and step onto his skis, taking off toward some nearby woods.

Without hesitation, Neal followed his example and pushed off after him. Peter and Jones belatedly took off after them while Diana met the local police and briefed them on the situation. Scott struggled in the dark and tripped over a branch and Neal took advantage to jettison his skis and leap onto him.

Peter and Jones quickly arrived, shouting, "Freeze! FBI." They secured Frei in handcuffs and Jones led him back to the resort as he read him his rights. Peter gave Neal a hand to help him up and congratulated him on his quick action. Neal beamed at the praise.

Neal retrieved his skis and put them on. He pushed off and headed back toward the lodge calling, "Race you back there, Peter!"

When they arrived back, breathless and laughing, Elizabeth and June and Mozzie clapped with delight as Neal pulled up just ahead of Peter and stopped with a flourish. Peter complained, "No fair, you had a head start!"

That evening, after the police left and the hotel manager apologized profusely, they all sat around a roaring fire sipping complimentary champagne. They toasted each other's bravery and cleverness until fatigue overcame them. Elizabeth leaned up against Peter and looked up flirtatiously. She teased, "Hey, haven't you been promising me something, Hon?"

Neal grinned from ear to ear and encouraged, "Yeah, Romeo. Your gorgeous wife needs your attention."

Sheila and Heidi hesitantly approached Mozzie and Jones and they eagerly invited them over. Diana walked off shaking her head. Neal grinned at June and offered her his arm. He proposed, "So shall I escort you to your room? I had an exciting night last night, so why don't we leave these folks to their fun and go get some sleep?"

June beamed at him, "Maybe we could play just one more hand of cards first."

**Author's Note:**

> The White Collar characters were created by Jeff Eastin for the White Collar series on USA TV (and Netflix and Amazon).
> 
> The ski resort and other characters are fictional.


End file.
